Zal Batmanglij
Writing
Biography
Zal Batmanglij is an American film director and screenwriter. He directed and co-wrote the 2011 film Sound of My Voice and the 2013 film The East, both of which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Batmanglij was born in France to Iranian parents. His mother is the cookbook author Najmieh Batmanglij, and his younger brother Rostam Batmanglij is a member of the band Vampire Weekend. Both brothers are gay. Batmanglij grew up in Washington, DC, in the United States. He studied anthropology and English at Georgetown University, graduating in 2002. There he met Mike Cahill in a philosophy class. They took a screenwriting course together and produced a short film that won the Georgetown Film Festival. Brit Marling saw the short film and asked if she could work with them. Several years later, after Marling's graduation, the three friends moved to Los Angeles, California, where Batmanglij attended the American Film Institute Conservatory. For his thesis film, he made a 35mm short called The Recordist (2007), which starred Marling.
Known For
Imagine the perfect American town... beautiful homes, manicured lawns, children playing safely in the streets. Now imagine never being able to leave. You have no communication with the outside world. You think you're going insane. You must be in Wayward Pines.
Wayward Pines
Seven years after vanishing from her home, a young woman returns with mysterious new abilities and recruits five strangers for a secret mission.
The OA
Gen Z amateur sleuth and tech-savvy hacker Darby Hart and eight other guests are invited by a reclusive billionaire to participate in a retreat at a remote location. When one of the other guests is found dead, Darby must use her skills to prove it was murder before the killer takes another life.
A Murder at the End of the World
An operative for an elite private intelligence firm finds her priorities irrevocably changed after she is tasked with infiltrating an anarchist group known for executing covert attacks upon major corporations.
The East
A journalist and his girlfriend get pulled in while they investigate a cult whose leader claims to be from the future.
Sound of My Voice
When Charlie Hall encounters an eccentric older woman named Avis Dauphin her life is turned upside down. Avis is convinced that Charlie is an alien life form sent to Earth to record a pivotal event in Human history. Is Avis crazy or does she speak the truth? If so, what is Charlie here on Earth to record?